Innocence Again
by gilmoregirl913
Summary: When Rory takes her normal taxi ride, someone in the car looks very familiar.  About a year ahead from season 7 finale.  Literati...is there any other way?  Rating?  For safety.  R&R.
1. Chapter 1

Rory looked over her cluttered desk at the offices of the New York Times and sighed. She needed it to be clean, but it was 1 in the morning, and she hadn't gotten more than 5 hours of sleep a night since she had started her internship. She loved it, but it was an incredible amount of work.

"Leaving so soon?" Mavin grinned at Rory. He was a seasoned veteran of the paper, 42 years of service. White clumps of hair surrounded his ears, and the rest of his head was as shiny as a cue ball. He was the nicest writer Rory knew, always willing to stop his work to help anyone who needed it. He was always at the offices for extended periods of time, and it was a running joke between him and the head of Media that he didn't have a house, just had all of his mail sent here.

Rory smiled. "Yeah, I figured I might get some sleep. You know, rest up."

Mavin waved his hand. "Ah, who needs sleep? Coffee has kept me awake for 23 straight years."

"True, true. Here," she handed him a manila folder, "is my work for today, including the two articles I revised and Ellen's work that she left with me to give to you."

Mavin took the folder, opened it, and called goodnight to her.

On the streets of New York, Rory always felt uneasy. Especially this late. She had to hail a cab, her car was useless in New York. She had refused to take it a few times, based on the appearance of the driver, and even if this was a bit prejudicial, she had heard two many horror stories from Mavin and the other intern, Ellen, to take any risks.

The cab she hailed held a young driver with dark brown hair. He looked nice enough, maybe he wanted to get in her pants, as did many guys her age, but it was only a ten minute ride. She got in and gave her address, and sat in silence for a few minutes.

Suddenly, he spoke in a voice that sounded familiar. "You know Ayn Rand? Damn, she's a political nut."

Rory looked in the front mirror and saw a grin on his face. A grin she would know in a split second.

"Jess! Oh my God!"

"I was wondering how long it would take you."

"What the hell are you doing in New York?"

Jess laughed. "Our company got picked up more, and we moved. I just do this at night."

"Why?"  
"Well, we got a contract here."

"No, what I mean is, why driving taxis?"  
"You meet a lot of people. Some have interesting stories. Plus, it's an easy way to pay for books."  
"How do you know your way around?"

"Well, I did live here for 16 years."

"I suppose. So, have you written anything else?"

"Yes. One."  
"What's it called?"

"Diction."

"About…"

"It's my 'thus far' autobiography. The guy who published it told me I was only 23 and couldn't have an autobiography yet…but I do. It's written in third person. Some people don't know it's about me."

Rory smiled. "This is my apartment."

Jess whistled. "Jesus, nice place. Logan's?"  
"Um, no, we broke up about a year ago."

"If I can, why?"

"He proposed. I said no."  
"I see."

"Well, I've got to go."

Jess stopped the car. "Rory, you should call me sometime."

Rory looked away and said nothing. She paid and got out of the taxi, walking inside. Jess banged his head on the steering wheel and then drove off, failing to notice the card she had slipped in with her money.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**Author's Note: Ahh, how bitter. If only he would've seen the card. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary: Rory and Jess met again when Jess drove the taxi she was in, but as luck would have it, they split without any promises of meeting again.**

**Disclaimer: Hahaha. No.**

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"He met her, her brown hair and blue eyes nearly blinding. She was brilliant. He knew at once she would never fall for him. But he was oh, so wrong."

Rory looked at the two pages about herself. Jess' book was truly stunning.

"Whatcha reading, Rory?"

Rory jumped, surprised to see Mavin standing over her. "Just a book my friend wrote."

"Diction." Mavin looked at the front. "By Jess Mariano."

"He lived in my town for a few years. He was…something."

Mavin smiled. "And you dated?"  
Rory blushed. "Well, yes."

He patted her hand in a grandfatherly way and walked on. Rory set the book down and snapped back to her article. She had gone out and bought the book during lunch and read half of it before Mavin had brought her back into reality.

"Gilmore, here's an article that needs serious editing. It's written by someone abroad, great story, God-awful writing. Use that genius degree to fix it."

Joe breezed past, dropping the folder. Rory groaned inwardly. She hated editing, she could only fix mistakes. She set to work, scratching out entire phrases as she worked. This writer truly was horrible. She finished up her article and worked on some other things, and when she looked at the clock again, it was 8. Sometime in the past 5 hours, a manila folder had landed on her desk, with a post-it telling her to fix it and add it into her next article. She decided to deal with it tomorrow, and left extremely early, going to a small Italian restaurant she liked. She ordered a plate of pasta and eagerly opened the book again.

"Oh, by God, look, someone's reading his book."

Rory looked up and saw two twenty-something guys staring at her. One had dark brown hair and green eyes, the other was an African-American with dreadlocks all around his face.

"Sorry, we're just stunned someone actually is reading this book. He's only sold like, 300 copies."

"Jess?"  
"Yep. The one and only. Thank God. Two of Jess would be enough for the whole world to fall to sarcasm."

"I see. Yeah, I, uh, I knew Jess."  
The two exchanged glances and focused their attention back on Rory.

"Hey, you don't happen to be, uhm, Rory Gilmore, do you?"

"I'm Rory."

"No freaking way. Wow."

"Do you know about me?"

"Well, he says he took you home during his route last night, and has been…God, so crazy today."

Rory bit her lip. "Then, can you, not tell him, I was, here, tonight?"

"Sure. If I can ask, is there a reason behind that?"  
"I just, don't want him to know."

"No problem."

"It was nice to meet you…um…"

"Carson Dalley." The guy with dark blonde hair stuck out a hand.

"And Eric Leland." The other guy, with dreadlocks, nodded.

"Eric. Manners." Carson smacked Eric's shoulder.

"Sorry." He laughed and stuck out his hand as well. Rory grinned and shook his hand.

"And it was good to meet you as well, Rory. We might see you again, eh?"  
"I honestly have no idea."

"We will. Jess couldn't forget someone like you. And I'd bet that you couldn't forget someone like Jess." Eric spoke as if this was inevitable.

Eric and Carson went over to another part of the restaurant. Rory reflected on this odd meeting over her dinner. She finished up and paid her bill. She took the subway home, a rare occasion for her, and called her mom.

"Hey sweets."

"Mom. He's back."

"Who?"  
"Jess."

"What?"  
"He drives taxis at night. He drove me home last night. He wrote another book. Diction."

"Sweetie, do…do you want…?"  
"No." Rory spoke quickly, unsure.

"Then don't worry about it." Lorelai chose not to comment on the possibility.

"But he wrote about me, in his book."

"So? Sweetie, you had a history with him. You can't change that. He was a part of your life. But don't worry about it, especially if you don't want him."

_"But do I?" Rory thought._

"I guess. God, I am just so, messed up. So confused."

"Why?"

"Because I never thought I'd see him again. I thought that after we kissed two years ago, it was over, done."

"Honey, I can't tell you what to do…the first reason is that you're 23 years old now, and can figure it out. The second, is that I honestly don't know. But you have time. I promise."

"When I need you to tell me what to do, you can't, when I don't want you to, you do."

"I'm sorry. I try."

"Well, I've got go, articles and stuff."

"Bye sweetie. I love you."

"Love you too, Mom. See you later."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Jess continued to sell little known authors at the newly opened publishing company/bookstore he helped run. He continued to drive his taxis from midnight to four in the morning. But wherever he was, Rory was never far from his mind. Ever since the ride he had given her 3 weeks ago, she had been present. A million different memories came back, from when he was 17. It seemed like yesterday.

_"Yeah but I didn't understand a word of it, so I had to reread it when I was fifteen."_ Jess remembered her smile, her soft, soft, smile as she spoke.

"_I've yet to make it through it." _

"_Really? Try it. The Fountainhead is classic." _

"_Yeah, but Ayn Rand is a political nut." _That line. The line that had caused them to realize it was each other. Or, Rory to realize it.

"_Yeah, but nobody could write a forty page monologue the way that she could." _

"_Okay, tomorrow I will try again, and you will. . ." _

"_Give the painful Ernest Hemingway another chance. Yes, I promise." _

"_You know, Ernest only has lovely things to say about you." _When he had first let that slide out, he had been embarrassed. But Rory had later said it was an incredibly romantic thing to say.

"Mariano. Some books, in the back, get them."

Jess smirked at Carson as he shook off the memories. "Drop them, Dalley?"

"Quite possibly."

"Got it." Jess went back and picked up the books. He walked into the front, the bookstore half and saw Rory wandering around. He was shocked, but pulled himself together. He went up behind her.

"Don't read that book." He muttered, careful not to move his lips.

Rory jumped up, and knocked over a whole row of books. "Oh my God, Jess."

"Who did you expect? I do work here. You know that." Jess stooped over and helped her pick up the titles.

"I know, I just, didn't expect that. And why shouldn't I read this?"

"It's explaining the life cycle of a piece of gum."

"Isn't there a little kid's book about that?"

"Yeah but I'm pretty sure the little kids book isn't so, uh, risqué."

"Oh, God. We live in a sick world."

Jess shrugged. "The guy who wrote it gave us a ton of money a few years back, it's the least we could do."

"By printing his book? Whatever happened to just paying back the loan? You could've upped it and added a bonus."

"This way, we just strongly discourage the buying of the book…actually, we refuse to sell it. We just give the guy a couple hundred bucks a month so he stays happy, and chuck all the copies."

"Wow, quite a shady business."

"I guess. But all of the other books in here are amazing, none of them are very well known at all, in fact, if it's even been near the New York Times bestseller list, or any bestseller list, we refuse it. No offense to the Times, of course." He nodded at Rory.

"None taken. And I'm sure the Times would live."

"So, what are you doing here?"  
"What do you mean? I'm at a bookstore. I read. I know you hated school, but really, the pieces fit."

Jess raised his eyebrow. "Really. This small bookstore in the middle of New York? That no one has ever heard of. Quite curious."

Rory sighed. "Well, I read your book. And I just…wanted to…I don't know. I just wanted to see if there was anything else good where you worked."

Jess knew there was more, but he had learned not to press with Rory. She would come around, if you stuck around to listen.

"Well, I do work here, I can give you some opinions."

"Okay."

Rory and Jess wandered around the bookstore for the next three hours. Based on the fact that the store itself only carried about fifty different books, Eric and Carson knew that they were not just talking about books. They left Jess alone, and continued about business as usual. But Jess would be in for hell tonight, they were to make sure of that.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"So, then, I talked to him for three hours." Rory sat at Lane's house the weekend after, visiting home for a weekend.

"Three hours? God, I can't even talk to Zach for two hours without taking a break."

Rory laughed. "Well, we just have a strong bond of friendship."

"Oh yeah, just friendship."

"Lane."

"Rory. Don't play this stupid act on us. Me, your mom, yourself. You still like him. Everyone knows it. He knows it. You know it, but you won't admit it. That doesn't change the fact."

Rory shifted uncomfortably on Lane's porch. "No. I don't."

Lane sighed and looked at Rory. "Whatever you say. Just don't let him go again. He let you go before, don't do the same to him."

"I'm not going to, because I don't want to be involved again. How could I miss the boat on someone I don't want to be involved with?"

"I don't know."

Zach came out, holding Steve and Kwan. "Say hi to Mommy and Auntie Rory, boys."

Steve and Kwan both gurgled and went back to sucking their sippy-cups. Lane took Kwan and left Zach with Steve.

"God, look at them, they're so big."

Lane nodded. "I know, it seems like just yesterday they were no bigger than a bag of flour."

"But they're already one."

"I know. Do you think that all kids grow up fast in their parents' eyes?"  
"I can't say from experience, but I know my mom always complains I grow up too fast." Rory looked at the clock. "Speaking of which, I'm so sorry, but I've got to go meet her."

"No problem. Stop in tomorrow morning though, just for a quick goodbye. And don't miss the boat."

"Of course." Rory and Lane exchanged a quick hug and Rory set off into the night, walking towards Luke's. She opened the door, and the bell jangled.

"Hey, sweetie. How was Lane?"

"Alright. She…got me thinking…about…" Rory was about to finish her thought, but Luke came in. Luke had no idea, and one thing she and her mom had agreed on was the fact that Luke would not be involved in this.

Lorelai gave her a sympathetic look. "Sweetie, she may be right."

"Right about what?" Luke looked up from the coffee he was pouring.

"Paris Hilton. She may be right about one-night stands."

Luke started to walk away. "Somehow, I don't think I want to know."

Lorelai grinned and exclaimed rather loudly, "Lukie, you know you do."

"Keep it down, there are other customers here."

Lorelai looked around. "Who? Kirk? Andrew? That's two people."

"And loyal customers."

"Ten years of service does me nothing. Am I not loyal?"

"Well yes, bu-"

"Do I not give you money for your services?"

"Dirty!" Rory interjected.

"Yes, but-"

"Then I am just as loyal as Andrew or Kirk."

Luke grumbled as Lorelai beamed. Rory smiled and took another sip of her coffee and continued to think about Jess. They had made no further plans; Rory had just left with 12 books and a smile on her face.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Jess had gotten back to the apartment he shared with Eric and Carson that night and was greeted to a lovely round of questioning. By midnight, they knew everything he knew about Rory, but that didn't mean they knew Jess' thoughts. Which was good. Because, damn, he wanted Rory back. Everything about her. And they couldn't know that.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**Author's Note: I think that was pretty long…but it held a lot of things. But beware, a twist is ahead. Review if you like, if you have constructive criticism as well…**

**And the italicized part is from A-Tisket, A-Tasket, and belongs to AS-P, not me. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: First, I would like to thank all of the wonderful people who reviewed; it made me want to write better and more quickly. And a special thanks to **Andra-ggfan**, who reminded me about the card. It is important to this story, but I had almost forgotten about it, in the rush of new ideas.**

**As I warned, this chapter contains a twist. And not a good one, at that. But it also touches on some basic stuff that has happened in the past year of Rory's life, and the last 4 years of Jess' life. This is a filler chapter, right up until the end.**

**I was also ****very**** unhappy that I decided not to include parts of Jess' conversation with Eric and Carson, so I'm going to flashback to parts of that.**

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Jess sat at the kitchen table, pondering over everything that had happened recently. More particularly, last week. When Carson and Eric had persisted and pried, and gotten Jess to speak about Rory. Eric was so damn philosophical, and he always got Jess thinking. Carson always tried to lighten the mood, but in this certain case, it was nearly impossible.

_"Why do you like her so much?" _The question had seemed simple enough. Eric had asked it off-hand, as filler.

_"I don't know. At first, she started out as someone I just wanted to date, looks probably. But then, she read, she was smart. She was clever and smart and was not afraid to speak her mind. She was so different from most girls I knew. She was…Rory."_

_Eric had nodded. He had paused before the next question. "What…went wrong?"  
"What do you mean?" Jess knew exactly what he meant. He wouldn't admit it though._

_"I know you dated her. But what went wrong? Jess, I know you too well to know that this was not good for you."_

_Jess had sighed, taken a sip of beer, and began a horribly painful story. "I finally, much to my surprise, had her hooked. I came home, she kissed me. And then, after a bit of a story which I don't really feel is necessary, we began to date. But when we began to date, everything else started going wrong. I was flunking out of high school, my mom was turning into even more of a flake, and I tried to not show all this to Rory. I just wanted everything to work out for her. But, I instead pushed her away. I would still talk to her, but I was always distant. It wasn't the same as when we were friends. Everything was screwed up and different. I was horrible to her. I ran away at the end. Then, a year later, I came back, and told her I loved her."_

_Carson whistled softly._

_"Exactly. And I asked her to run away with me to New York. Wherever. I knew she wouldn't say yes, I had a horrible track record, and she was at Yale, for God's sake. But I still wished. She said no, and then that was the last I saw of her for about a year and a half. Do you guys remember around two and a half years ago when I left mysteriously?"_

_Eric and Carson nodded._

_"Well, I went to go see her. To tell her I wrote a book. And she didn't hate me. And then she came to the book showing that April…I don't know if you remember. But after, we kissed. But she ran back to the blonde dick, saying even though he cheated on her with like five different girls when they were "broken up" she still loved him. I have never been so crushed in my life, I want you to know. That he was better than me, it made me feel horrible, a "how bad was I then" sort of deal. But then again, I've screwed up so much with Rory. I've treated her like a piece of trash…worse than that. Just when I had her, I was such a damn idiot. I've never forgiven myself for that year we dated. Or anything after."_

_"But she's giving you another chance." _

_"I don't know that, Carson, I don't know that. She came to the bookstore, yes, but still. It doesn't mean anything."_

_"Do you want her back?"_

Jess had not answered that question when it came that night, but it had been on his mind since then. Yes, he did. He did with every fiber in his body. Ever since he had left that night at Yale, he had missed Rory. He had gone on to Philadelphia, and started to work at a small company, publishing little known books. This was where he met Eric and Carson. They had worked with him, and soon the three were inseparable. They knew him inside and out, and Eric especially understood having a runaway father. Carson had been kicked out of his house, for reasons he had yet to reveal. They were all in somewhat of the same boat. They rented an apartment together. He started penning his own works. One day, Eric found it, and had given it to their boss, as a sort of joke. He loved it, and wanted to publish it. Initially, Jess had been furious, but Carson had gotten him back on track. He had written Diction right after seeing Rory at the book showing, she had been the inspiration for the work. And since then, he had had a steady job, a little bit of extra cash. He had moved back to New York the previous fall, and hadn't stopped thinking about Rory during the entire time. He had fallen for her harder and faster than he had ever fallen for anyone else. And now that he had the chance, he'd be damned if he messed it up again.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Rory got back to work the next day and glanced at the headlines so familiar. **"Obama Pulls out of Presidential Race".**This was a few months too late. Well, for the general public, it was fine, but Rory had known for months.

_Barack Obama stood in front of the team of journalists, family, friends, and other people following his campaign trail. He took a deep breath, and spoke in a deep, soothing voice._

"_Journalists, reporters, friends, among many hours of pondering, I have come to a conclusion. It has been my decision to pull out of this presidential race."_

_He had continued speaking, but that is all most people heard. He had later informed them that he would officially announce it in about six months, and it would be vital to their status as respected news people not to leak the story. _

Rory had arrived back in Stars Hollow by December. She had made quite a bit of money off of her job, and experience, but she was now jobless.

It had been her grandparents who had encouraged her to try for the fellowship again.

Rory had at first been skeptical of the idea. She didn't know if they fellowship would still accept her, as she was now 23, and a year out of college, but she still applied. She worked on a small Hartford newspaper until she got the results. This time, they had been positive. Rory had packed up her bags, and left almost immediately. Lorelai hadn't been as sad this time around, as Rory was only a few hours away.

Rory had gotten an apartment from her grandparents, who insisted. She hadn't really made any friends at her job, but she had only been there for about five weeks. She and Ellen talked, but Ellen had grown up here, gone to college at Columbia, and now worked here. She had a lot of friends from her childhood. Rory and Lane still talked, but their lives were so incredibly different, and besides, Lane lived three hours away.

Rory hadn't seen Paris in almost a year. They e-mailed semi-regularly, but not enough to say anything. Paris claimed to be working her ass off, which Rory didn't doubt for a second.

Lorelai was always there, but she was not a work friend. She was a unique friend, her best friend at that, but not someone in New York, not someone her age, no matter how many times Rory forgot.

Given those situations, Rory worked, and slept. She ate whenever possible. She rarely went out, if she did, it was to the bookstore. Her life was a bit boring, but it was in a routine, which Rory appreciated.

She and Logan had not spoken since her graduation day last year. She had regretted the marriage proposal a few times, but then she reminded herself that she wouldn't be where she was now if she had married him. She would probably be sitting at her Californian house under the avocado tree with a bouncing baby Huntzburger. And frankly, Rory didn't want that.

And then, now, here was Jess. A blast from the past. Rory didn't know her emotions, nor did she trust them. Her brain would tell her one thing, but her emotion would tell her another. She had given Jess her card, but so far, he had not called. She had gone into his bookstore. Maybe he didn't want her anymore. But did she? That was what she had yet to figure out.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Really? Mariano?"  
"Yep. We want Jess."

"Why the hell Jess?"  
"We like his edge."

"Well, I'll send him along, but I still think you're a bunch of asses. Pardon the French. Jess is a good writer, but we have better ones."

"Maybe, in your opinion. We want Mariano."

"Bye." Edward Grey hung up the phone and yelled back into the storeroom. Jess came in a few seconds later, looking confused.

"Mariano, guess who was just on the phone?"

Jess gave his boss a look. For as little as Ed had seen Jess, he knew that look meant something along the lines of, "Why the hell do you think I would guess?"  
"Fine. That was Truley Associated."

Jess kept staring at his boss.

"The company."

"I know."

"They want you to go to Seattle to talk about your book."

"When?"

"Next week, it'd be a month you were there."

"Why?"

"They love your book. They would take you to a bunch of libraries and bookstores all around Seattle to talk about it, what inspired you, all that jazz."

"Do they know it's an autobiography?"

"Yes."

"Then…I can't really have inspiration."

"Jess, just go. I don't know anyone with half a mind who would pass this up. It could jumpstart your career."

"Fine. I'll go. Do I need money?"

"All of your hotels, food, and travel expenses are taken care of. Any spending money though, for tourist attractions, must be found elsewhere."

"So do I need money?"

Ed sighed. "No, Jess, you don't need money."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Well well well. Our little author is going on tour." Carson slapped Jess on the back and pretended to wipe a tear away from his eye. "Write a postcard, don't forget us."

Jess smirked. "I'll be sure to not forget you. A month is so long."

"Well, Seattle has good coffee," Eric remarked.

"Damn good coffee at that." Carson grinned.

"And it's all over."

"It is. On almost every corner."

"Would you two shut the hell up?"

"Have you ever had one from a place called Joey's? It was on the corner of Fourth and State." Eric acted as if Jess hadn't spoken.

"Nope. Is it good?"

"Phenomenal. You haven't had coffee until you have Joey's."  
Jess interjected. "For the love of God, shut the hell up."

Eric laughed. "Fine, but I want you to bring me back some coffee."

"Alright, I'll bring you back the damn coffee, now stop talking about it."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

_  
_ **Author's Note: Short. And dull. For the record, though, I wrote this chapter about four times, because I was having a hard time figuring out how to get Jess out there. I didn't want to waste space talking about Jess getting ready, so the next chapter will start a few days after he's already left. Maybe I put Jess a little OOC because I don't know if he would go on a tour, but he is. **

**I had to have Obama pull out of the Presidential race; it seemed to be the only logical way for Rory to be at the New York Times. And I don't know if she could have the fellowship, but she does, alright? **

**Next Chapter: The card shows up, a little too late, Rory finds out he left, and Jess arrives in Seattle. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: If anyone was wondering, Lorelai and Luke are simply dating, right where we left them after the series (sob) finale. That really will not be important, but still. An FYI.**

**I decided instead of a few days after Jess leaves, it is right when he arrives.**

**And all this positive feedback is simply wonderful.**

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Jess stepped off the walkway and into the baggage claim area. So far, from what he saw of the Tacoma National Airport, Seattle looked nice. He picked up his duffle bag, heaved a sigh, and walked to the front desk.

"Excuse me."

The woman at the front was talking on the phone. "And I just can't stand him. But I don't wanna leave him, ya know? He's one of those guys…yeah."

Jess narrowed his eyes and spoke a bit louder. It was clearly a social call. "Would you please get off the damn phone?"  
She groaned. "Got to go, Mel, some guy's standing here, looking pissed." She set down the phone and glared at Jess. "Hello sir, what can I help you with?" Her voice was false and cheery.

"I'm Jess Mariano."  
"And I'm Gina Lenai. Great. I'm glad we got that out of the way."

Jess shuffled his feet and rearranged his bag. "I'm here with Truely Associated. They said that I should come to the front desk, and I would get information."

Gina started clicking away on the computer. "Oh, the Jess Mariano. Yep. Get a car outside, and go to Marriott Waterfront Seattle, the driver will know where it is. And then, once there, just talk to them."

Jess walked outside and hailed a cab in true New York fashion. It zoomed out of line right for him. He got in, staring at the befuddled people still attempting to whistle.

"Where to?" The driver was an elderly man with grey hair.

"The Mariott Waterfront."  
"Ah, nice choice. There's good coffee right down the street."  
Jess smirked. "So I take it coffee is big here."

"It is very big. I hope you like coffee."

"I like it. It's not the best, but, I'm not complaining."

"Good. If you hated it, I might have to kick you out."

Jess smiled. In a few moments, they arrived at the hotel. Jess paid the driver and left a substantial tip. He walked into the lobby of the hotel and was stunned. Even for his standards, this place was fancy. Activity bustled over the lobby, and the hall was absolutely beautiful. Chandeliers dangled from the ceiling. He went over to the desk and was quickly handed a room key and a number to call, to talk to Mr. Williams, the head of his tour.

Jess' room was on the third floor and he opened the door and found a message blinking on the machine already. He pressed the button and listened to a voice cut the silence.

"Jess Mariano, this is Mr. Williams. It is about 2 on Wednesday and I hope you found everything okay. If you could give me a call before 9 tonight, that would be wonderful. Thank you."

Jess sighed and picked up the phone, dialing the number.

"Hello?" The same curt voice cut the air.

"It's Jess."

"Jess. Wonderful. My name is Ted Williams. I am going to be your activity coordinator, and the one who makes sure this month is as enjoyable as possible."

"Great." Jess' voice dripped with sarcasm, but Ted Williams was too thick to hear it.

"So you have gotten to your room well enough."

"Obviously. As I am calling you from the hotel."

"Well, there is a dinner at Migiano's at eight. Please be there. There's a handful of other authors attending, authors who will be at other places."

"Great."

"So we'll see you at eight?"

Jess sighed.

"See you then." And with that Mr. Williams hung up the phone.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

"Jesus Christ. What does the guy keep in his room?"

Soon after Jess had left, Eric and Carson had received word that they had to move out of their current apartment. Apparently some high-class citizen wanted it. And they were the first out. Carson had sent out a stream of expletives, Eric had tried to reason with them, but they had to be out in two weeks.

After boxing up their items, Eric and Carson had pushed open the door to Jess' room. It was piled high with books and boxes. Clothes and dollar bills were strewn everywhere.

Eric laughed. "Well, books."

Carson reached down through the piles and picked up a pair of jeans. As he picked them up a thunk hit the ground and money fell to the ground.

"Hey, look at that. We found his old phone. And…money." Carson bent down and picked up the twenties. He opened them all up and saw a white card.

"What the hell's that?" Eric bent over to see what the card said.

Rory Gilmore Home: (234) 242-2347

3234 Lulan Ave. Cell: (234) 455-6219

New York City, NY Work: (234) 342-6621 ex. 32

"Oh my God. It's that girl. Does Jess know about this?"

"I'd guess…not. Otherwise he'd probably have it."

Eric picked up his phone. "Well, then I have to call him." He punched some numbers and in a few seconds heard a ring on the other line.

"Hey, Jess."

"Eric."

"We got evicted. Kind of. More like kicked out."

"Damn. Where are we moving to?"

"We have no idea. We're just moving out right now. And we're cleaning out your room…and we found a card."

"Huh?"

"A business card of a certain Rory Gilmore."

Jess' mind flashed back to the cab ride. Had she really given him a card after all?

"Okay."

"I know you want the information." When Jess said nothing, Eric proceeded to tell Jess everything on the card. Little did Eric know Jess was writing it all down.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"And so, this book is my autobiography. It is not a pretty sketch of myself, my life, but it is what it is."

The audience in the Seattle Public library politely clapped. The crowd milled around for a few moments. Most left. Although this was Jess' first "talk", he had suspected this. No one wanted to hear about hardships or starving for weeks on end because his mother was too busy to go to the store, or the time when he was seven that he was kicked out of the house. They just wanted rainbows and butterflies.

Amazingly enough, a few people came up and asked for their copies to be signed. One person in particular struck him.

The person was wearing a tweed cap and an old coat, full of holes. They were obviously old, and obviously had seen much worse days than Jess had. When they spoke, their voice was old and creaky.

"Mr. Mariano, I wish my life could've been as inspirational as yours. We led the same life. But you did something. I did nothing. I've regretted that my whole life." And with that, they left Jess just standing there, his mouth open. He continued to talk to the few remaining, but that person struck him the most. Here was what he could have been. Here was what he had become.

Jess stacked up the copies of his books after the stage went quiet and he pulled out his phone. He got halfway through dialing Rory's number, but then quickly shut the phone.

"Well, Mr. Mariano, not the best, but certainly a good start."

"People are too afraid to hear about what some people have to deal with daily."

"I suppose so." Mr. Williams looked at Jess curiously and boxed up the books. "Well, Jess, the rest of the day is yours to do whatever you like. Tomorrow at 2 you have a book signing at the Little Book on 12th, and then the dinner with the company at night."

"Okay."

Jess walked out of the highly air-conditioned library, and pulled out his phone again. He dialed the number. He was 23. He was too old to chicken out about calling a girl. Regardless of whom she was.

The rings on the other end seemed endless. They seemed to ring into nothing, until her clear voice picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hey. It's Jess."

"Hey, Jess. What…uh, what are you up to?"

"Well, I'm on a sort of "mini-tour" with Truely Associated in Seattle for a month."

"Oh my God, Jess, that's wonderful."

"Yeah."

"So…is there a reason for the call?"

"I just…well, Eric found the card you gave me…is it from the cab ride?"

"Yeah. That's so old, I didn't know if you were going to…use it or whatever."

"I just never knew. You never said anything."

"Yeah, well."

The silence got so awkward between them. The bookstore had been fine. The bookstore conversation had been about books, about their respective lives. But this seemed to keep veering toward and "our" life.

Jess was painfully aware of the silence. "Well, I, uh, just wanted to let you know I finally found your card."

"Okay. I have some…work…to get to. Bye, Jess."

"Yeah. Bye."

With a resounding click, Rory had hung up as quickly as she had picked up. Jess hated himself. He couldn't hold a conversation for more than a minute. And now Rory could exit out of his life, she had her free card. He had returned her bookstore gesture, and she could now choose to just leave it at that. Besides, New York was big. Even when he got back, there was probably a miniscule chance he'd see her randomly again.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**Author's Note: Well, for how long the time gap was, it sure wasn't fantastic. But, I plan on speeding up the Seattle time, to have Jess back in New York in a chapter or two. **

**Oh, and there is a Mariott in Seattle, on the waterfront, but not the restaurant or any of the coffee places mentioned, to my knowledge. The streets/numbers are completely made up. The Mariott and the airport do exist though.**

**And I have not decided whether or not the mysterious person at the library will play a role in the story yet.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: As amazing as the final Harry Potter book was, it is still so melancholy because of my like 9 year investment in this series, so I'm writing to kinda forget about the book for a bit, it just makes me sad.**

**And ouch, two reviews? Guys, even if you hate the chapter, tell me, tell me what you hated. Tell me what I should work on.**

**I hated my whole tour idea, so Jess is just back. Nothing else. Sorry. :-/ It wasn't going in any direction. **

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Rory bit her lip as she decided between coffees. She finally settled on what she thought would be the stronger one, paid for it, and left the secluded coffee shop amidst the traffic of New York.

Between Emily's sudden collapse at her DAR meeting to her mom and Luke fighting, and the deadline for her portfolio coming up faster than she could believe, Rory was caving under everything. She had snapped back at Mavin last week, just for asking if she wanted cream in her coffee, and Paris had called to congratulate Rory on being in the Times, but Rory had yelled at her.

But the worst part of this whole situation was the fact that she and Lorelai were in some fight. "Some stupid little fight," she thought as she drank the bitter coffee. Neither remembered the exact details, but Rory remembered something about yelling at her mom for her lack of ability to communicate with Luke. Lorelai had lashed back, angrily, and the pair had gotten into a large argument that had been going on for a week and a half now. They'd had stupid fights like this before, but since they didn't live in the same house anymore, making up took longer. They weren't forced to be together so much. The anger just bubbled.

And Emily had been in the hospital, they called it congestive heart failure. Simply put, her lungs had been filling up with fluid. Rory had driven back and forth between Hartford and New York more times than she cared to count in the past 4 days, and the whole situation was worsened by the fact that she wasn't speaking to her mom, neither would budge.

And then there was the whole Jess situation. She hadn't spoken to him for over a month now, but their last phone call was incredibly awkward, and Rory didn't want to remember him by an awkward phone call. She had contemplated calling him a few times, but she didn't need to have yet another worry.

She checked her phone, and there was a message from Lorelai. Lorelai's voice was not bubbly and warm like usual, instead, it was stiff and cold. But at the end of the message, Rory gasped.

"Rory, I just thought you should know that Grandma's doing fine and she likes our visits. I also thought I would let you know, however, that they intend to keep her in the hospital for a few weeks, at the minimal. That's all."

Rory fell down onto the sidewalk, clutching her handbag but letting her coffee spill on the sidewalk. Tears stung her face and the unusually cold wind hipped her hair all around. Her behavior was certainly not unusual for New York, in fact, it was quite normal.

"Rory?"

Jess walked up behind her, and sat down next to Rory. He looked into her blue eyes questioningly.

"Oh, h-hey, Jess." Rory stood up and wiped the tears from her face, she felt embarrassed at the sight of someone she knew.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, really. Just stupid stuff."

Jess grabbed her arm as she attempted to walk away. He pulled her back so she was facing him, and repeated the question.

Rory took a deep breath. "Well, my grandma's going to be in the hospital for a month, I have nothing done for my portfolio and it's due soon, I've snapped on both Paris and Mavin, my mom and Luke are fighting, and on top of all that, my mom and I aren't even speaking."

Jess gave Rory a hug, engulfing all of her. She cried softly into his dark black shirt and caught a whiff his familiar cinnamon smell. This whole time he continued to whisper small words of encouragement in her ear. Rory felt a tingle go down her spine everytime she felt his breath on any part of her skin. Her heart started thudding in her chest, as if it remembered this particular feel, his touch. She tried to shake off these feelings cascading through her, but she couldn't. Her tears mixed into his shirt and into her hair, and he continued to stand there, comforting her better than anyone else could have at that moment.

Finally, with a dejected sniffle, she stood up straight and looked at him, embarrassed by the wet part of his shirt. He glanced at her, worried.

"Do you want some coffee or something? Seeing as how yours is spilled?"  
Rory nodded, and they walked down the crowded street. He turned into a small coffee shop and ordered them both large coffees. They sat down at a small table and sipped the coffees in silence for a few moments.

Simultaneously, they both began to speak.

"Rory."

"Jess."

Both stared at each other for a few moments. Finally, Rory spoke. "Jess, I just wanted to thank you for everything. For just, God, everything you've done these past few weeks. And before that, for getting me back into Yale and everything. Just, you've done more than you'd believe. I hate sounding sappy like this. But ever since you left my senior year I never truly forgave you. Until now."

Jess sighed. "So, what, do we, do from here?"

"I have no idea."

"Rory, I want to be completely honest with you. I will never be fully over you. Ever. You were different from anyone else I'd ever dated. I just wanted to tell you…and I don't really care if you reciprocate the feelings in any way, I just wanted to tell you."

Rory looked up at him. She looked into his chocolate brown eyes and heard everyone's voice in her head. Lane, her mom, everyone. She took a deep breath.

"Jess, I can reciprocate. The feelings I mean. But I can't let myself fall down crazy yet. Give me time. Please. If you can't, then we'll leave again. I know I've messed with your head before, but I can't do this now. I can't."

Jess sighed. He stirred his coffee and glanced at his hands. "Why?"

Rory's hands began to shake. She set her coffee down and couldn't look Jess in the eye. She looked up and down, wishing, hoping, she would wake up from a terrible dream. But she didn't. "I-I…"

Jess continued to stare at Rory, refusing to believe this jibberish she wasn't saying.

"I can't Jess. I'm sorry. Not now. I just, can't."

Jess looked at Rory coldly. "Why?"

Rory took a deep breath. "Because Logan called me."

"The blonde dick?"

"The one and only."

"Was he slobbering drunk? Did you hear about six girls in the background? Was he off squandering Papa Hamburger's fortune?"

"Jess, shut up."

"Rory. The guy is an ass. And you're a goddamn fool to stay with him. Or go back. Whatever. I don't even really give a damn anymore, Rory. If I'm going to continue to be a distraction for you, when you need it, then I refuse. You turned down his damn marriage proposal, and now you're running back to this bastard."

Jess stood up and walked out. By the end of his spiel, he had been yelling, so the whole coffee shop turned and saw Rory's tears slipping out of her eyes, for the second time in less than an hour. She hated Jess. She hated Logan. She was mad at her mom, she was mad at Emily for being in the hospital. She was torn. Jess, who had waited so patiently, or Logan, who had called out of the blue last night? Rory had no idea.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Jess walked around aimlessly. The nerve. Rory had completely led him on, like last time. And then she ran back to that, that… Jess couldn't find words to describe him. He always broke Rory into pieces, and then tore her apart. He was a fool. Jess had never hated a particular man more than Logan.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Rory walked into the Plaza and asked for a room number. Once she had walked up to the sixth floor, and knocked on room 632. A blonde head opened the door.

"Rory?"

Tears slipped from her eyes.

"I can't do this anymore."

He opened the door wider. Rory stepped in, her eyes red with the tears of someone she had never had.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**Author's Note: The blonde ass returns! Sorry, I despise Logan. But he had to come back, or so I felt.**

**And yes, I did base a lot of the ending off Partings, but trust me; it will have very different results.**

**This might be too drama-y, but it has to happen. Rory and Jess have had many roadblocks in this form of their relationship, but fear not, lovely Lits, they are almost…okay. Scout's honor.**

**And so, please review. Tell me what you think, good and bad. **


End file.
